Darkest Days
by sgdfs
Summary: It's been four months since Samus had destroyed Zebes, and yet she still can't get the horrific metroids out of her dreams. Now temporarily settled on a planet, she finds a mysterious bounty hunter who isn't quite what she expected. CHAP 5 IS NOW UP!!
1.

—Darkest Days— ****

—Darkest Days—

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by: Glass Angel

CHAPTER I

Samus scanned the area cautiously, ready to retaliate at a moment's notice. A flash of movement to her left set off her instincts as she immediately opened fire toward the creature. The monster let out a high-pitched shriek as the plasma laser made contact with it and fell dead on the ground. Samus couldn't make out what the creature had looked like, but she didn't need to—she already knew what it was. It had been a metroid. The jellyfish-like metroids were everywhere, and Samus knew she had to be wary of their presence.

She spotted another flash of movement, this time from behind. She whirled around swiftly and shot another laser from the arm-cannon of her suit. The metroid dodged the beam, to her great surprise, and grazed the top of her helmet, causing her to fall headfirst onto the ground. The metroid gave her no time to regain her composure; it immediately latched onto her, engulfing her into its slimy body. She felt the large four fangs spear into her suit, creating large dents that intruded lightly into her own body, causing her to cringe in pain, but the pain she felt then was nothing like she experienced a second later as the metroid began to relentlessly suck away her energy.

Samus struggled to scream, but could only let out a choked cry as the metroid continued its leech-like action. She could feel the fangs piercing her body, felt the innards of her captor, felt the failure of her suit as it began to disintegrate away from the lack of energy. It finally disappeared completely into the bowels of the metroid, leaving her own soft, weak flesh exposed to the unmerciful gnashing of the monster's fangs. The pain was more than Samus could bear; it felt as if millions of ruthless knives were scraping repeatedly against her bare skin. Another sharp pain forced an ear-piercing scream from her mouth. She cringed with pain once more, catching a glance at her hand as it began to shrivel into a bony disfigurement. Samus gasped at its gruesome appearance.

_This can't happen to me,_ she thought, panic-stricken. _I killed all of the metroids! I killed all of them!!_ But the metroid's actions contradicted her silent protests as it continued to relieve her of her energy. Samus felt her whole body giving in to its fate as it began to shrivel away, her organs collapsing from lack of strength. Her quick breaths slowed considerably, her eyes losing sight. Samus's heart strained to keep her alive, giving her a piercing pain in her chest, and her whole body trembled. 

Her shriveled arm suddenly tore from her body and tumbled to the ground, and she cringed at the sight, for the lack of nerves in that area kept her from feeling any of its pain. Samus let out a final scream as her body collapsed and caved in on itself with sickening cracks and snaps.

***

Samus immediately sat up in bed with a terror-stricken gasp, coated in beads of hot sweat, breathing hard. She stared around the room with widened eyes, then put a shaky hand to her forehead. She closed her eyes miserably.

"It was only a dream," she murmured to herself, exhausted from the night. "A nightmare. The same one I've been having for months. Ever since I destroyed Zebes. . ." Samus pulled herself out of the bed with great effort and made her way to the kitchen in her apartment. She filled a glass with water from the sink and took a long sip from it, feeling the cool water run over her parched tongue and down her throat. She leaned against the wall and took another sip, staring out the kitchen window. It had been four months since Zebes had exploded, and Samus hadn't had a mission for a while. She had taken a trip to the planet Kasken and rented an apartment, deciding to live there for the time being. All the metroids died with Zebes, she was sure of it; why was she having these nightmares every night? 

The nightmares made sleep a struggle—so much of a struggle that Samus began to dread the night's approach. She dreaded it so much that she soon developed insomnia, making her health worsen and her feeling for the impending dusk increase. Sleep had become so hard to achieve that she had been taking sleeping pills, reasoning that a miserable sleep was better than no sleep at all, although the aftermath felt the same. Samus wiped her brow with the back of her hand and finished the glass of the soothing water and returned the glass to the cupboard after drying it.

"I can't stay in here," Samus muttered, returning to her room and pulling open the closet doors. She quickly changed into a pair of black jeans, cyan halter top, black jacket, and black boots. She pulled her hair back with a leather strap and hooked a spare gun to her belt, then exited the house. 

Her apartment was located in the heart of the city, so a quick visit to the local bar was a simple task and required no kind of transportation besides one's own legs. Samus opened the door to the bar and walked in, sitting herself down at the counter and signaling the bar tender.

"What's a pretty lady like you doing out so late at night?" he said, walking over to Samus. "This place is dangerous at night." A small smile played about Samus's lips as she pulled her jacket aside, revealing the silver pistol at her waist.

"I think I'll be alright," she said to him. "Give me a hard one." The bar tender pulled out a shot glass and filled it with vodka.

"Rough night?" he said as he handed the shot glass to Samus. "Two dell."

"Yeah." Samus accepted the hard drink and replaced it with two silver coins. "Very rough." She threw her head back and swallowed the liquor, then eyed the bar tender. "Do you by any chance have a bounty list?"

"Actually, I do." He bent down and pulled a lengthly list out from beneath the counter. "We get bounty hunters here all the time." 

Samus took it from his outstretched hand and examined it, then sighed in dismay. "No one new," she muttered, returning the list. 

"You a bounty hunter too?" The bar tender asked as he cleaned a glass. 

Samus nodded absent-mindedly as she idly fingered the shot glass. "Yes, but I haven't found any good ones lately," she murmured, handing the glass back to him. "Give me another one."

The trade between liquor and currency went underway again, and Samus took another swallow.

"So you only go after the good ones, huh?" the bar tender stated. "You must be a good killer, considering you're not scraping for every job on the list." 

Samus waved a hand and put the shot glass down. "I don't waste my time with weaklings," she answered dismissively as she thrust the glass to him. "Another."

The bar tender accepted the glass. "You should probably make this your last one," he advised, filling the shot glass to the brim. "I don't think you want to go home drunk, especially around here." 

The door opened silently as Samus took the glass from the bar tender's outstretched hand. A man walked over to the bar and sat down at a stool near Samus. 

"I'll take a shot," he said, signalling the tender. 

"Well, Talon, how'd the job go?" the bar tender asked as he gave him the shot glass. "Kill the guy you were going after?" 

"Of course," Talon said as he took a swallow from the glass. Samus ignored the young man beside him as she concentrated on her own liquor.

"It looks like you'll have some competition here," the bar tender said, motioning to Samus. "We got another bounty hunter in town." 

Talon turned to Samus. "Oh really?" he said, amused. Samus acknowledged his presence with a brief glance. He was a rather handsome young man, about twenty-five or so, with longish black hair and yellow eyes. His black armor was concealed by an obsidian-colored leather jacket that trailed down to his ankles, meeting a pair of equally black combat boots. His strangely-colored eyes held her attention for a moment, but she returned to her glass soon after. Talon seemed even more amused by her reaction.

"Not very talkative, are you?" he said with a smile. 

Samus drank from the shot glass and eyed him. "Nothing to talk about," she muttered to him.

"So." Talon rested his elbows on the counter and studied Samus's face. "You're a bounty hunter, huh? It's kind of obvious by now, but I'm one too."

"I never would have guessed," Samus responded dryly, fingering the now empty shot glass once more. 

A rich laugh erupted from Talon, and he put his shot glass down on the counter. "What a sense of humor you've got," he chuckled. "Something piss you off?" 

Samus stood up after breathing a frustrated sigh. "I'm going now." She eyed Talon. 

The bar tender picked up her shot glass. "You haven't paid for your shot yet," he reminded her. 

Talon reached into his pocket with a black leather-gloved hand and pulled out two dell. "I'll pay for it," he offered and dropped the money into the tender's hand without waiting for a reply. 

Samus eyed him. "If you think that's going to get me to like you by paying for my drink, you've had too many shots," she stated, then spun on her heels and walked to the door. As she did so, she swayed a little bit and caught herself before she fell. Talon put his shot glass down after emptying it and stood up, walking over to her.

"Maybe I'd better escort you home," he said, taking her arm. "It looks to me that you're the one who's had too many shots." Samus jerked her arm out of his hold and walked out of the bar silently. Talon followed her after tossing two more dell to the bar tender.

"Why are you following me?" Samus asked as she turned a corner without looking at him.

"I told you," he said, keeping up with her pace, "you're this close to getting drunk. Lord, you could get jumped out here and raped or something."

"Since when do you care about a complete stranger?" she muttered to him behind her back. "Not to mention a fellow bounty hunter. You should be happy for the lack of competition, and I am fully able to take care of myself."

"Killing is boring without competition," Talon replied matter-of-factly. "It makes things more interesting if I have someone to fight with."

"Is that the only reason?" Samus asked him. "That's good. For a minute there I thought you were attracted to me or something."

"Well," Talon smiled, "no one said that wasn't part of the reason. I do find you quite attractive." 

Samus stopped and eyed him. "Get away from me." She turned around and kept walking. Talon followed with pleased smile. Samus looked over her shoulder and faced the road as she turned another street corner. "Don't make me hurt you." 

Another deep laugh escaped Talon's throat. "You don't know how much you entertain me," he said. 

"I'm glad." Samus crossed the street at an intersection. Talon caught up with her and walked beside her.

"We haven't even introduced ourselves properly," he said, catching her arm once more. Samus tried to smack it away, but Talon caught her oncoming hand and kissed it. "My name is Talon." 

Samus thrust her hand out of his. "If you really need to know, I'm Samus." She glared at his smiling, handsome face. "Now get away from me, or I'll have to kick your ass."

"Samus?" Talon looked at her with renewed interest. "The bounty hunter who destroyed Zebes? I'm honored to meet you then." He smiled knowingly at her. "I also have some news that you might be interested in." 

Samus crossed her arms over her chest. "Oh, yeah?" she said, not particularly intrigued. 

Talon nodded. "The last guy I killed not only got me a good profit, but he told me that he worked for a guy named Ridley." 

Samus blinked. "I killed Ridley on Zebes," she insisted to him. "It probably isn't the same guy."

"It's the same Ridley you supposedly killed, though," Talon replied, "and he's alive."


	2. 

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Author's Note: Sorry I haven't updated in awhile; there's been so much going on lately that I haven't had time for anything, but the story will go on. Sorry for the delay, and enjoy the story!

****

—Darkest Days—

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by: Glass Angel

CHAPTER II

"Alive??" Samus glared at the fellow bounty hunter before her. "What do you mean, he's alive?"

"Exactly how it sounds," Talon replied matter-of-factly. "The guy I killed didn't tell me where he was exactly, though. He said that he was somewhere in this galaxy before I killed him."

"Then why didn't you get him to tell you where Ridley was before you blasted his head off?" Samus demanded. "If he's alive, he still has a high price on his head."

"First of all, I don't blast people's heads off," he said.

"That's beside the point!" Samus glared darkly at him. "I appreciate the information, but get the hell away from me. I'm tired of you trying to kiss up to me for some unknown reason. For God's sake, we just met." She turned to leave.

"Hold on a minute," Talon reached for her arm one more time, but Samus immediately whipped around, gun aimed and ready at him. He held his hands up. "Woah, calm down."

"Get lost." She pulled the safety catch.

"Hey, don't you think you've had to much to drink to handle a gun?" Talon smiled daringly.

"Don't you think you've bothered me enough get away with your life?" she shot back. 

Talon chuckled good-naturedly. "Okay, I get it. I'll leave you alone." He turned and walked off. "See you later." He waved behind him.

Samus glared at his back, then put her gun back in it's holster. "Damn guy doesn't know when to quit." She continued her journey back to her apartment. "There's something strange about that guy," she said to herself. "He acts so. . .abnormal."

Samus opened the door of her apartment and went inside. "Maybe the liquor will help me forget about him," she muttered, undressing. "Or it'll just give me a really bad hangover. Either way, I won't have time to think about him." She fell onto the soft mattress on her bed and pulled the light sheets over her worn-out body.

"I just hope it'll get rid of these damn nightmares."

* * *

Samus crept over to a window on a large building and looked inside. Her prey—an infamous, successful trader and businessman—was inside somewhere. Sure, she knew he wouldn't earn her as much money as she would like, but she had to pay the bills somehow, and good bounties were scarce. She didn't even need to use her suit for this one.

Samus silently pulled out a glass-cutter from one of the many compartments on her belt and cut a tiny hole in the window near the bottom. She poked the glass onto the sill inside and slipped her fingers through it. She then cut a larger half-circle around her fingers and pulled the glass away with the grip she had made. Samus carefully laid the glass aside, slipped her hand through the hole in the window, and unlocked it. She quietly pushed the window open and slipped through.

Samus scanned the room. Just seemed like a big storage room. Nothing but scattered crates and cobwebs. Otherwise, it was empty. Nodding to herself, she landed silently on the ground and walked over to a door. The bounty hunter pressed her ear against the wooden door, expecting to hear murmurs of deals being struck and money being traded—but heard nothing.

"What?" Samus blinked, then turned the knob. The metal knob came off the door in her hand. She examined it and found a cut on the side of it. "Someone's been here," she murmured to herself, then pushed the door open.

Samus gasped. "You!"

The long black leather jacket that the dark-haired man was wearing rustled as he turned around. 

Samus's gaze was met by a pair of strikingly yellow eyes.

"Oh, Samus." Talon smiled. "Didn't expect to see you here. I thought you only went after big fish, and, compared to Mother Brain, this one's more like a tadpole."

"I didn't expect to see you again." She glared at him. "Where's the bounty?" 

"Hm?" Talon looked up. "Oh, him. He's behind me." He took a step to the side. 

Samus stared.

Dangling from a long black metal cord was a bloodied, lifeless corpse. Scattered around it were a dozen or more crumpled bodies, free of their souls and bodily fluids.

"Well." She turned to Talon. "That's a rather interesting way to kill someone. I've never heard of hanging people nowadays."

"I'm not finished yet." Talon brushed past Samus, pulling out a long diamond knife. He leapt up and sliced the blade clean through the corpse's neck. Talon caught the bloody head as the body fell into a crumpled heap with the rest of the corpses, seeping fresh blood. Samus blinked as she realized a common trait among the bodies—they were all headless.

"Well, that's done," Talon said cheerfully, placing the blood-soaked head into a leather sack. 

Samus stared back at him. "Did you do that to all of these people?"

"Yes." Talon nodded, tying the sack with a cord without looking up.

"Why didn't you just shoot them?" she questioned. "This must have taken a long time."

"Shooting someone is boring," he replied, wiping his gloves off with a rag. "This way is much more entertaining." 

Samus eyed him. Apparently this man was a lot more morbid than she expected.

"You obviously think this is a game," she muttered.

"Not at all, my dear." He smiled warmly at her. "I just enjoy the moment of death. It's so . . . invigorating to watch someone's life get taken away." He slung the sack over his shoulder and nodded to her. "Good day to you. Don't worry about these men—they aren't worth anything." He winked at her. "Maybe I'll see you at the next target. Until then." He turned and exited the building. 

Samus stared after him. She never would have expected that the kind and rather annoying gentleman she had me the previous night would have turned out to be an expert bounty hunter with an obsession for death.

"I'm going to have to watch him," she said to herself, "and make sure that I get to the bounties before he does. I have to earn money somehow." She pulled out a scrap of paper from her jacket pocket and examined the list of names. "The next-highest bounty is a bar owner across town. At least it's not the one I was at last night." Samus returned the scrap to her pocket and left the old building. She walked a block or two away and found her parked motorcycle.

"I should get going," she muttered, "if I want this next bounty." She climbed onto the motorcycle, revved it up, and sped down the street.

"I wonder where that Talon guy came from in the first place," Samus wondered. "He doesn't look like any of the other residents around here. He could be a traveling bounty hunter like I am, but why is he the only one that I've seen?"

She turned a corner. "Apparently he likes to play around with his bounties before he kills them. He doesn't seem to care much about the profit. He probably took up bounty hunting so he could kill without running the risk of going to jail more easily if he was just a murderer. But he seems too soft to be a killer to me, at least in appearance. He's a very strange man, and disturbed, too."

Samus braked in front of the bar and gazed up at it. "It looks undisturbed. I guess I beat him to it; there are still customers in there." She parked the motorcycle and stepped inside.

"Give me a shot," she said, sitting down at the counter. A young man with shocking red hair looked up at the sound of her voice from a booth across the bar. The bar hostess noticed her and gave her a shot glass full of liquor. Samus took a sip and turned her nose at it. "You call this good liquor?" she demanded, thrusting the glass at the bar hostess's face. 

The bar hostess blinked, surprised. "Do you want a more expensive brand?"

Samus rolled her eyes. "I've had better liquor than this for a cheaper price. What kind of service is this? I demand to see the owner of this bar."

"Right away." The hostess disappeared into a backroom, then soon returned with a burly middle-aged man.

"Are you the owner?" Samus questioned, casually reaching to her belt.

"What's the problem?" The man demanded gruffly, obviously disturbed that he had to be dragged away from whatever he was doing.

Samus smiled, pulling the safety catch on her gun. "You."

She immediately pulled out the gun and shot a bullet into each light in the ceiling. Glass from the bulbs exploded into thousands of pieces and scattered everywhere. Samus smiled as she heard people screaming and chairs being overturned as customers tried desperately to exit the building.

During the commotion, Samus fired another bullet across the counter. She heard a scream from the bar owner and a thud. The bounty hunter leapt over the counter and searched through the man's pockets.

"There it is." She pulled out a Resident ID card and slipped it into her jacket pocket. She turned and faced the panicked crowd. "My job is done here." She smiled. She fired a bullet through a window, leapt through it, and climbed onto her motorcycle.

Despite the great crowd running blindly before him, the red-haired man didn't bother to get up. 

He only smirked.

* * *

Samus entered the bar she had visited the previous night and sat at the counter. She signaled to the bar tender.

"Give me a shot," she said to him.

"So, you're back," he said as he handed her a glass. "Glad to see you're not dead." 

"Same to you." She smiled dryly and drank some of the liquor. "I won't be here for very long this time," she said. "I just need to have a word with someone." For some reason, Samus had an urge to see Talon again; she didn't quite know why, but she felt she needed to inform him of her victory.

Just as she had expected, the door opened, and the dark-haired bounty hunter entered the bar.

Talon sat down beside her. "I see you've beaten me to the punch," he said, nodding to the television reporting about the bar incident.

"We're even," she said, finishing the shot. She stood up. "I just wanted to let you know that I haven't lost my touch since Zebes," she pulled out the ID card and showed it to him.

"Just as I thought," Talon replied. "I guess if you don't have the head, you'll need some sort of proof that you killed him. I don't waste my time with Resident ID's, though." He accepted a shot from the bar tender. "Lopping off a head is more amusing."

"You're a very disturbing man," Samus replied, returning the ID to her jacket pocket.

"Thank you." He smiled cheerfully to her and finished his shot.

Samus tossed two dell to the bar tender and turned to Talon. "I'm going home," she stated. "I don't want you following me again. I will shoot you this time."

Talon laughed. "Don't worry. I'm about ready to turn in myself. However, I am surprised you let all those witnesses go at the bar."

"I'm not afraid of commoners," Samus replied, making her way to the door.

"You never know who's a commoner and who's not," Talon said, returning to his glass. "Take care." Samus exited the bar without a word.


	3. 

****

—Darkest Days—

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by: Glass Angel

CHAPTER III

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This can't happen to me. . .

I killed all of the metroids. . .

I killed all of them. . .

I killed all. . .of them. . .

I KILLED ALL OF THEM!!!!

Samus woke up screaming once more, her icy fingers grasping the edges of the soaked sheet until her knuckles went white. She stared around the room with the wide eyes of a child, but found nothing ominous or threatening.

"God, I can't believe it." Samus wiped the cold sweat from her brow. "Why the hell can't I get a grip? I've had the same dream for four damn months!" But something just wouldn't let her calm herself during those nightmares; almost as if a pair of sharp, bony hands were holding her eyelids open and forcing her to stare into the gruesome bowels of the damned metroid demons.

She heaved a heavy sigh and climbed out of bed. _There's no way I'll be able to get back to sleep with these sheets, _she thought to herself; _They're so cold and wet from my sweat that'll I'd probably freeze._

With a quick sweep she pulled the sheets off of the bed and walked down the hall, then dumped the cold mob into a hamper nearby. She shivered and pulled on a dark silk robe that she had found near the hamper, for the hard linoleum floor was cold at night, and she didn't really sleep in much.

Samus sleepily tugged out some new white sheets from the dryer in the dark and began to walk slowly back to her room with light steps to keep from resting all her weight on the cold floor. Finally she made her way onto the warmer carpeted hallway and looked up to see a faint light escaping from her cracked door.

__

That's strange, she wondered. _I never turned a light on. I've been stumbling around in the dark all night._ She cautiously tip-toed to her doorway, the pile of warm sheets in her arms forgotten, and immediately whipped open the door.

A dark figure's head whipped up in her direction, a faint flashlight-type object in his hand. He was standing at the foot of the bed, but before Samus could make out anything more than that, he was out the open window with the agility of a stealthy black cat.

"Hey!" Samus dropped the sheets and dashed to the window, but the violator was no where in sight. She stared out the window for a few moments, then closed the hatches and locked them tight.

__

Great; now I've got a stalker on me.

She pulled the sheets over her bed absent-mindedly and looked down at it, but thoughts of rest were now forgotten and impossible to retrieve. She knew now that someone was after either her or something she had, but which of the two? Samus then began to wonder how long this person had been there and how frequently he visited. Was this the first night he had come, or had he been there several times in the past? The bounty hunter knew well that she could defend herself, but how well could she when she was asleep?

Samus walked over to the nightstand and opened the bottom drawer. A silver handgun was revealed, and she took it out of its home and let her robe drop to the floor. Climbing back into bed, she tucked the gun under her pillow just in case she ran into any more unpleasant surprises that night.

* * *

Talon looked up as Samus sat down beside him at the bar. It had become some sort of routine for the both of them now to meet at the bar at certain points of the day. Although Samus thought Talon was a little more than different, she possessed a rather morbid curiosity for him and couldn't break her frequent trips to the bar to either wait for or meet him.

"Good morning." Talon nodded to her, smiling good-naturedly. His smile faded slightly as the fellow bounty hunter thunked herself down on the adjacent stool and quickly wiped a bit of sleep out of her eyes. "Are you all right?"

"No," she answered bluntly, eyeing him tiredly. "Some jackass was in my room last night."

"Oh." Talon sounded surprised, his eyes slightly widened for a moment. "Was he. . . invited?"

"Hardly." Samus glared. "I don't know him."

"Okay." He looked relieved, then grew serious. "There was a stranger in your room last night?"

"I don't know what the hell he was doing in there." Samus shook her head. "As soon as I went in, he shot back out of the window as fast as someone escaping death. I couldn't see any features of him, only the fact that he was male."

"Damn."

"I know." She looked back up at him. "I guess I need to start locking my windows now."

"Do you need anyone to stay with you for now in case the bastard returns?" Talon eye's met Samus's.

Samus narrowed her eyes. "I think I can handle this, Talon. And," she raised an eyebrow, "I don't need a hung and decapitated corpse in my room. I'd have to pay extra to get the blood hosed off."

Talon laughed. "You humor me shamelessly." He smiled back at her. "You probably can take care of him yourself, but just remember that I'm here to take him out if you need me to."

"Why do you care so much, anyway?" Samus queried.

The dark bounty hunter continued to smile. "It's just what I said when we first met; I do enjoy competition, and that last bounty that you beat me to proves that life around here should get a little more interesting. I don't need my fun to be spoiled by a sick lecher or murdering assassin, do I?"

Samus shook her head. "Whatever you say." She tossed another glance at him. "Where do you live, anyway?"

"Wherever," Talon replied. "I'm not native to this planet. I usually stay in my ship, but I might rent an apartment or something like you did to find a more comfortable setting. And besides," his smile grew daring, "I need to spend all that money I earn somehow."

Samus eyed him with a small smile. "I was expecting that." She stood up.

"Where are you off to?" Talon looked up at her as she straightened her dark purple jacket.

"Probably to take a look around the town, see what I can dig up." She smiled wryly. "Or just beat you to another bounty. Later." She waved behind her as she left the bar.

Climbing onto her motorcycle, Samus pulled out a scrap of paper and studied the names scrawled in a quick fashion in black ink. "My next target is across town. Guess I'll have the scenic way this time." She rode down the street, making sure to slow a bit more than usual to familiarize herself with the scenery.

"Not much around here," she muttered, unsurprised. "All I need to do is get those bounties before Talon does; otherwise, I won't be able to make any money."

* * *

Samus walked into her apartment late that night, dropping a blood-stained ID card onto the kitchen table. Yawning, she stepped into her room and tiredly undressed, lazily tossing her gun on a nearby chair. Pulling out the sheets of her bed, Samus settled in and shut out the light, the only thought in her mind being the word 'sleep.' But no matter how tired she was, her body refused to give in and let her slip into the sweet subconciousness.

"Just let me sleep. . ." she muttered to herself, eyes closed, hand clutching the pillow.

Minutes soon grew into hours as Samus laid in her bed, silently begging her body to rest, but it just wouldn't. With her eyes still closed, she rolled over. exhausted. She suddenly felt something light brush her cheek, but she thought nothing of it; as drowsy as she was, she only believed it to be just a simple insect or the corner of her sheet. She then felt five long, thin warm objects touch her chin and lift it slightly. They felt very much like fingers to her. . .

Samus's eyes immediately shot open, the figure in front of her leapt away from the bed instantly. It was obvious that this person was the one from the previous night, but he wasn't just holding a light this time—in his other hand was a long, thick cord.

Samus grabbed the gun from under her pillow and let out a barrage of shots as the figure shot out of the room. She immediately took up the chase and followed him, still firing her gun at the killer. He found a window and crashed through it, sending shards of glass everywhere. Samus dashed to the window and sent another barrage of bullets out of it until she heard a dull click and no bullets came out.

She glared out through the window darkly and faced the room. There were several bullet holes in the walls where she had missed the bastard, and shards of glass were scattered all over the floor. Samus began to make her way back to her room, but halted with a gasp as her bare foot met a long shard. She weakly raised her leg with a cringe and removed the glass, watching the fresh blood pour out of a large laceration. She carefully limped over to the bathroom and filled the tub with water. Wiping off the wound as best she could, Samus slowly dipped her foot into the cold water and cringed in pain. She leaned her head back and closed her eyes.

__

What the hell is going on. . .

* * *

The next night, Samus turned out the light to her room and sat down in one of the chairs silently. She hadn't said a word to Talon about the past night's attack; she was just silent the whole time she was at the bar. She knew he suspected that something had happened, but he didn't press her to tell him. All Samus wanted to do now was to kill whoever was trying to kill _her_.

So patiently she waited in the inky darkness, her eyes open and alert from the chair. She had piled some of her clothing underneath the sheets, creating an illusion of a body in deep sleep under it. Samus knew her killer wasn't so stupid as to fall for something like that for long, but she hoped it would at least entice him into the room.

She watched the window next to her bed carefully; she guessed that he usually got in through there, since it was so close to the bed. It seemed like the only logical thing for him to—

Samus let out a choked cry as a metal cord was wrapped around her neck and pulled taut. Her hands flew to the cord, trying desperately to loosen it. She fell out of the chair as the cord was jerked roughly to one side. Two strong hands grabbed her own and tore them away from the cord, binding them tightly behind her back. Recovering from her surprise, Samus immediately rolled over and kicked the man in the face, for he had to bend over to tie her hands together.

The man jerked backward and covered his face with one hand in pain as Samus struggled to get up. Unfortunately, he still had hold of the metal cord, and Samus was feeling very lightheaded and dizzy. She leaned against the wall and tried to pull herself up, but was sharply jerked to the ground again. She hit the floor with a dull thud, choking and coughing up a warm solution. Her captor regained his composure and stood up again.

She felt him grab her feet and bind them together as well as she struggled weakly in vain. Samus tried to turn her head to look at him, but the cord was still taught, forcing her to stare at the wall across the room. She was helpless, completely bound, unable to move. Her vision became blurry from lack of air, for the cord around her neck was closing off her breathing supply. A dark puddle of blood was collecting from the edge of her mouth. She squeezed her eyes shut as she was lifted up and carried out of her room.

She was brought into the largest room in her apartment—the den. There were some large boxes still left in there from when she moved in, and her captor stacked them up on the wooden coffee table in the middle of the room. Samus felt herself being laid onto the topmost box, then opened her eyes weakly. They immediately grew wide.

The killer was tying the cord connected to her neck on a strong hook on the ceiling.


	4. 4

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Note: Sorry about the incredibly long delay once more, but thank you once again for your patience. I was very busy all summer with songwriting, but now I should hopefully be able to be consistent with updates.

****

—Darkest Days—

__

by: Glass Angel

CHAPTER IV

Samus stared up at the cord with wide eyes.

__

He's. . .going to hang me. . .oh God. . .it can't be—

She felt so helpless; if she tried to knock herself to the ground, she'd only hang herself now—her captor seemed to have a good hold on the cord, and it was almost tied on completely. She was lying on her stomach with her head facing away from the man, so she still couldn't get a good look at his face.

Samus didn't care, however; she had a pretty good idea of who it was.

She watched the killer out of the corner of her eye as he looped the cord around the hook meant for lights on the ceiling as if he did so every day, although the thick black gloves he wore slowed him a little. She eyed the gun to her side and blinked in revelation. Samus turned and knocked the gun off the box, making it clatter to the floor. The killer glanced down at it sharply, already alert for intruders. Samus kneed her captor as hard as he could, sending him sprawling to the floor with a grunt. He immediately leapt to his feet and knocked the boxes out from underneath her. The cord tangled around Samus's hands behind her back just as she had planned—now holding herself up from certain death. The murderer cursed under his breath and lunged at her, but she sent him to the floor once more with another hard blow, this time to the face. The force of the kick sent Samus spinning in place, and her arm muscles burned at the strain.

Samus saw the killer cover his face with his hand, glaring at the helpless bounty hunter in frustration. He reached down and picked up the forgotten gun, immediately firing a shot at Samus. The bullet pierced the cord and entered her chest, slamming her against the wall with bone-cracking force. She shreiked in pain as she hit the ground with a dead thud, but didn't get the chance to recover as another bullet was sent into her shoulder. Another scream escaped Samus's throat. She breathed heavily, limbs sprawled limply about her, nearly unable to breath. A black leather boot came into her view, causing a puddle of blood to ripple in disturbance. The boot steadily began to disappear in darkness, and the floor seemed to be spinning beneath her beaten body.

__

God . . . just let me see the bastard's face . . . before I . . . die . . .

But all that she could see was darkness before a cold unconciousness overtook her.

* * *

__

Cold. . . nothing but cold. . . always. . . why am I not surprised. . . 

. . .

. . . what? . . . bedsheets? 

Samus's eyes fluttered open, surprised. She wasn't in Heaven, Hell, or any other place like that—she was in her own bed. She sat up quickly and stared down at the sheets as if she had never seen a bed before, then cringed in pain and put a hand on her shoulder. 

"Don't sit up so fast. You don't want to hurt yourself." 

Samus's head whipped up toward the direction of the all-too-familiar voice. There he was, sitting on a chair in the corner, watching her—Talon. 

"You bastard!!!" Samus immediately felt around underneath her pillow for her gun without taking her eyes off the dark bounty hunter, but felt nothing but the sheets. 

"Looking for this?" Talon held up the small silver handgun. "I took it out from under your pillow so you wouldn't set it off while you were sleeping. You do realize the safety catch is off, right?" 

Samus glared at him fiercely. "How the hell do you have the nerve to still be here after trying to kill me???!!" She demanded. 

Talon blinked in surprise. "Excuse me? Try to kill you?" 

"Don't you dare try that half-ass 'innocence' act, Talon," Samus countered, "because I sure as hell won't buy it." 

"Now what makes you think that was me who tried to kill you last night?" Talon questioned, slightly affronted. 

"The man last night tried to kill me the exact same way you always kill other people," she accused, "and why the hell else would you think to come to my house that just happened to be the night I was nearly killed!?!" 

"Because," Talon replied impatiently, "you've had someone break and enter your house nearly every night recently, with the killer getting closer and closer to you every time. Even an idiot would know he would try to kill you fairly soon, so I decided to stop by and see if you were all right. It's what anyone in my position would do. And also, we all kill people the same way, so I wouldn't pin that on me immediately." 

Samus blinked. "What do you mean by that? 'We all'?" 

Talon paused, realizing his mistake. "I just used to be apart of a certain bounty hunters' guild, that's all." He shrugged offhandedly. "It was just a style of killing that we used. The hanging part, at least; it was kind of like our calling card. I don't know exactly who this guy is, but I'll search some records and find out as much as I can about him." 

"Why are you doing all this for me?" Samus eyed him, still not fully convinced. Talon stood up. "Just one bounty hunter helping another. I'll be in your den looking up information on my computer. Oh, by the way," he stopped at the door and looked over his shoulder with a small smile, "I cleaned up the mess in there for you." He left the room with a swish of his long leather trenchcoat.

Samus watched him leave with a quick flash of black, dumbed into silence and confused. The age-old question came to her once more—who exactly _was_ this guy? He obviously wasn't telling her everything, that was for sure. There was definitely more to this dark bounty hunter than a pleasant face and a fetish for death.

A cold chill swept over her, and she pulled the sheets around her shoulders.

Was he really telling the truth. . . 

. . . or was he the one who tried to kill her?

. . .

Either way, he was a really good liar.

* * *

Talon entered Samus's room silently, a styrofoam box in his hands. Samus looked up from her bed, her silver gun in one hand and a polishing cloth in the other.

"I'm back," Talon greeted, stopping at the bedside and holding the box to her. "Seeing as even I don't enjoy my own cooking, I just picked up something from the bar." Samus accepted the box and lifted the top. Scalltops, fried.

"You know, I've never been a fan of seafood," she replied. Talon chuckled.

"You are never satisfied," he countered. "I get the feeling that you'll say you dislike everything I give to you on purpose." He move a stray black lock from his face and eyed her with a sly smile.

"I guess you just never know with me." Samus studied the fish on her lap thoughtfully. She looked back up at Talon, who averted his eyes and turned his head to the window. 

"You've been here for a few days now, and the bastard hasn't returned yet. It makes me a little suspiscious." Talon's attention turned to her at the sound of the cool accusation in surprise.

"You still think it was me?" he questioned, raising his eyebrows but still speaking in a calm manner. "Tell me, if you do think it was me, then why are you letting me stay here while you are currently. . . incapacitated at the moment? Wouldn't that give me an even greater advantage to kill you while you're handicapped?"

"If need be, I can move just fine if someone is going to kill me. It's not like my leg or arm is broken." Samus didn't even know herself why she didn't just tell him to leave, but he wasn't answering all of her question. "And stop avoiding my questions. Why hasn't he returned yet?"

Talon was silent for a moment; he seemed to be thinking. "He and I did come across one another when I found you unconcious that night. We got into a brief scuffle before he ran off. He might suspect that I'm still here and stay away until I've left."

"It's logical, but I don't know if I quite buy it yet." Samus eyed him, growing serious. 

Talon's smile disappeared for a moment, then returned just as quickly as it had gone.

"Believe what you want, then." He stood up from the chair he had a habit of sitting in and left the room without another look. Samus watched the door close and looked down at the food in her lap. It was beginning to grow cold, and didn't look too appetizing anymore, for whatever the reason. She closed the carton and tossed it in the trash can across the room.

* * *

"Samus. . .? Samus, wake up."

Samus's eyes opened sleepily, and all she could see for a moment was a black blur in front of her. Her eyes focused, and she saw Talon leaning over her bed, with something dark strewn across his left eye. She immediately sat up.

". . . Talon? What happened?"

"I found the guy we're looking for," he replied, wiping some of the blood away from the laceration above his eye. "Or rather, he found me." His face was dark and serious, almost a complete contrast from the sly friendliness he usually used around her. He looked very angry as well. The expression on his face indimidated her slightly, and she ignored another chill.

"Do you know where he is?" Samus asked, climbing out of bed.

Talon nodded, going to the door so she could change in privacy. "Get ready quickly; we need to get rid of this one fast." The tone of his voice was enough of a hint to show that he meant what he said.

Samus nodded and changed into a pair of dark jeans and a long-sleeved marroon shirt, then pulled on her boots. Grabbing her gun, she left her room and followed Talon out.

Now, Talon. . . let's see just how you're going to stage this one.


	5. V

****

—Darkest Days—

__

by: Glass Angel

CHAPTER V

The cold rain pounded hard against Samus's back as she followed Talon's motorcycle on her own, but she tried her best to ignore it. The only things she was concentrating on was not losing sight of Talon in the inky black darkness of night and just how he was going to trick her into believing that he wasn't the one trying to kill her. This was definitely going to be interesting.

Talon lead her down many winding roads and to a part of the town she didn't visit quite often—run down, small houses, very few people about. The few streetlights that still struggled to stay lit helped Samus locate the jet-black motorcycle before her. It was difficult enough to try to see him at night, but it was nearly impossible with all the black he wore. She followed the quick, flashing movement of his black leather coat to differentiate him from the surrounding darkness.

Talon suddenly made a sharp turn to the left and Samus, albeit a bit surprised, followed him into a narrow alleyway. They flew past a few homeless people who eyed their motorcycles with lustful want. The alleyway seemed to stretch much further than Samus expected until Talon came to an abrupt stop. She halted just as quickly and pulled off her helmet. Talon did the same and faced her.

"This is the place," Talon said, turning to a tall metal door on the side of one of the buildings. He tried the door and found it unlocked. "Apparently he's expecting our company." He opened the door quietly and stepped inside with Samus close behind.

They found themselves in a large warehouse, obviously abandoned—the floor was covered in dust and grime, with metal crates scattered about carelessly. All was silent, and the room was as black as the night sky outside. The fellow bounty hunters stepped in cautiously, guns out and ready. The silence was so deafening that it was beginning to distract Samus, but she kept her wits about her.

Suddenly, a brilliant illumination of flames burst out of the ceiling and lit a large torch hanging in the middle of the room. Talon and Samus pointed their guns up instinctively, but saw no one. The room was now brightly lit, and they could see everything but the corners of the ceiling itself.

A form leapt down from one of those corners and landed a distance away from them. He was dressed all in black, with a small hood and mask to cover his face. The only skin showing was around his deep hazel eyes—otherwise he was clothed in black, from his thick black gloves to his knee-high ink-colored boots. A large gun rested in his left hand; it was about as long as his thigh.

Samus stared at him for a moment, then glared. "That's him."

"Just as I thought," Talon replied, eyes still fixated on the man before them. "Now do you believe me?"

They both looked up at the sound of a click of the man's gun.

"Talon, you came," he said, watching him calmly. "I'm surprised you came so soon." He spied Samus beside him. "And you brought the bounty hunter girl with you." Samus eyed Talon questioningly. Talon didn't look at her.

"I told him I'd bring you here when he found me earlier tonight," he explained. "I'm not worried about you at all."

"Do you know him?" Samus asked.

"I know of him, but nothing more," he answered. The man before them laughed out loud.

"Talon, don't lie to the girl." He pulled the mask down and lowered the hood. "You know me."

Samus gasped. Underneath the hood was a shock of long, bright red hair. The sight instantly brought her back to the bar she had gone to to collect her bounty of the bar owner—he was the only customer who didn't leave the bar as soon as she had opened fire. His frame was smaller and a bit thinner than Talon's, but he looked no younger.

Talon didn't answer for a moment.

". . . Shirk," he muttered. "How nice to see you."

Shirk raised the gun at them, which seemed a lot larger than just a normal firearm to Samus. "I'm getting tired of waiting for you to make up your mind, so I'm taking over this now." He pulled the trigger, and a burst of bright red flames escaped from the mouth and blasted in Talon and Samus's direction. They leapt on opposite sides and opened fire at their red-haired enemy. Shirk dodged the flying bullets and climbed onto a metal crate with ease.

"He always did have a liking for fire," Talon glowered. He let out another barrage of bullets in Shirk's direction, but he had already disappeared into the darkness of the corners of the room.

"I'm going to kill that bastard!" Samus reloaded her gun. "Why the hell does he want to kill me? I don't even know who he is." She turned to the frustrated Talon. "And how do you know him?"

"I told you," he replied, studying the darkness carefully, "we were apart of the same guild. I guess he's a private assassin now. I wouldn't be surprised at all." He glared even more.

"You damn fool." Shirk's voice rang through the entire room like a church bell. "You know exactly what I'm doing." A huge field of fire exploded from the ceiling and engulfed Talon.

"Talon!!" Samus stared over at Talon, who was crouched on the ground and still aflame.

"Go find him!" Talon yelled to her. "My coat is flame-resistant! I'll be fine!" Samus stared down at his flame-ridden body, turned, and ran across the room.

"Shirk!! Where the hell are you?!" Samus looked around at the ceiling, trying hard to spot his red hair in the darkness. "You coward!!" she screamed at the ceiling. "Attacking me at night and now hiding from me! What kind of assassin do you think you are?!" 

A flash of red appeared in front of Samus as Shirk smacked her across the head with the flame-thrower. She fell to the ground, sending her gun sliding across the floor a good distance away. Shirk's foot came down hard on her stomach, pinning her to the ground. Samus gasped in pain.

Shirk pointed the flame-thrower at her face. "The smart kind." He pulled the safety catch with a satisfying click.

He hardly saw the sword coming as a diamond blade sunk into his stomach.

Shirk leapt back with a scream of pain, dropping the flame-thrower to one side and covering the gash in his gut. Talon pulled his sword back, the flames around him now dead, and dark blood dripping from the tip of the blade.

"Shirk, get the hell away from her," Talon commanded with a glare. "This is none of your business." Shirk regained his composure and withdrew an equally diamond blade covered in obsidian glass.

"Oh?" He glared just as fiercely. "Is it?" The two bounty hunters lunged at eachother and met blades. Samus sat up and coughed hard, trying to catch her breath. She looked up and found the two of them engaged in a swordfight, using intricate skills that would put an expert swordsman to shame. Every clash send shards of obsidian everywhere until Shirk's black diamond blade was nearly naked. No one seemed to be winning over the other; an equal match, even with almost identical style.

Samus broke her gaze away from the fight and spotted her forgotten gun a few feet away. She scrambled up and ran over to it, scooping it up from the ground smoothly. Turning, she pulled the safety catch and shot a bullet straight at Shirk's back.

The bullet made contact, and Shirk gasped in surprise. Talon took advantage of the opening and slashed the assassin across the face. Shirk cried out in pain and leapt back, a hand flying to his face.

"D-damn you Talon," he spat out angrily. "You're fucking up everything. . ." He grabbed up the flame-thrower and leapt up a few crates.

"Hey!" Samus ran toward the crates, but then stopped—he was already gone through the ceiling.

Talon walked over to her, sheathing his sword. "Are you alright?"

"Of course, I'm fine," she answered, turning to him. "The question is, are _you_ alright?" Talon's tired expression was dispelled with a small smile.

"Aside from being set on fire, I'm just fine as well. I doubt we'll be seeing the last of Shirk, though. This confrontation seemed a little too short to be the final one. I know he'll come back to kill you." Talon paused. "He must be after your bounty. After all, you did kill Mother Brain."

Samus nodded in agreement, then stopped and turned around. "Do you. . . smell something?" Talon sniffed the air. His fading smile disappeared completely.

"It smells like. . . gasoline. . . " He stared at the wall in realization and immediately grabbed Samus by the wrist. "Let's go!"

The two sprinted toward the door, but it was too late. The explosion erupted from behind them and sent them flying through the air, engulfing them in flames and debris and shattered glass. The sound was deafening, and the glass tore at Samus's limbs mercilessly. She screamed in pain as a shard of glass grazed her head, forming a laceration from her forehead to behind her ear. The two bounty hunters hit the wall of another building and were pressed against it by the force of the explosion. Talon covered Samus protectively with his own body, shielding her from debris.

The explosion seemed to last forever—nothing but flames, shards of brick, glass, and metal, and chunks of earth constantly slamming against Talons back, and causing him to cry out in pain. Samus stared up at Talon's pain-wracked face in dumbed silence—why would he do such a thing for her? Why was he risking his life to save her?

"Talon. . ." Her voice trailed off.

Talon opened his eyes weakly and looked down at her. He smiled a small, knowing smile at her, but soon gasped in pain from a shard of glass. He cringed deeply, blood and sweat coating his face. She reached up and wiped some of the mess away from his eyes.

The explosion soon died down, and all was silent in the cold, unfeeling night. The only sound came from Talon's heavy breathing as he drooped wearily. Samus wiped more blood from his face.

"Talon. . . why. . ."

Talon opened his eyes once more, and smiled that smile she was so familiar with.

"I told you. . ." he said quietly, slowly. "I need a little. . . competition. . . here. . ." His head began to droop.

"Talon. . ." Samus began, almost as weakly, for she was losing a lot of blood from a headwound the stray shard of glass had made, "you can't have competition when you're. . . dead. . ."

"I won't. . . die. . ." Talon replied matter-of-factly. "I. . . can't. . ."

He slowly lowered his head onto her shoulder, and they both lost themselves to unconsciousness.


End file.
